Circuit-breaker.



F. L. SESSIONS. CIRCUIT' BRBAKBR. APPLIOATION FILED AUG. 6, 1903. RENEWED SEPT. 14, 1905.

Patented Sept 27, 1910.

/fvI/ENTR 9212771: L essw/VS,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK L. SESSIONS, OF COLUMBUS, OHIO, ASSIGNOR, BY HESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO THE JEFFREY MANUFACTURING COMPANY, A CORPORATION 0F OHIO.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 2'?,A 1910.

Application led August 6, 1903, Serial No. 168,531. Renewed September 14, 1905. Serial No. 278,483.

To 4all whom it may concern:

Be'itknown that I, FRANK L. SESSIONS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Columbus, in the county of Franklin and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Circuit-Breakers, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein' to the accompanying drawing.

This invention relates to improvements in protective devices used to prevent an excessive draft of current on the units o f a plurality either of sources of electrical energy or consumers of electrical energy which are adapted to be connected in multiple, in series or in various series multiple combinations with a single working or supply circuit respectively.

My invention obviates the necessity for supplying separate circuit breakers with .each unit-of such a plurality of units, one circuit breaker automatically protecting all the units regardless of the manner in which they are connected to the working circuit.

I have taken to illustrate my invention a storage battery, of which the cells or groups of cells may be connected in a variety of ways to either a single supply circuit or working circuit. As thus applied, my invention results in the securing of advantageous results specific to storage batteries,

and my invention is-especially useful in con' nection with storage batteries.

AS applied to storage batteries, this invention relates to improvements'in the construction and arrangement ofthe parts by which storage batteries are connected to the charging lines, and also .may be connected to the motor or other translating devices which they are to operate.

It has for its object to provide an apparatus for ltaking the current to and from the cells of a storage battery in such manner that they shall be under ull protection, and at the same time in such way that they can be connected in several ways in comparati-vely rapid succession with the several parts of the vcircuit ywit-hout shock to any of the parts of the system.

In the drawings I have shown more or less conventionally, and by means of what may be regarded as a diagram, a set of parts and the relative arrangement thereof -which .embody my improvements.

A indicates the incoming and outgoing,

charging of the cells of the storage battery.

B indicates the two sets of conductors of the circuit which extend tothe motor or inotors or other translating devices and to which current is conveyed from the battery 1n the manner to be described.

The storage battery itself is conventionally illustrated -by C. It may be composed of any desired number of unit cells. These, considering the entire number, are so divided or grouped that there shall be several sets or groups, as I shall callthem, of cells, of any desired number, and each group containing any desired number of cells. .For the sake of illustration I have shown the cells as divided intogroups of 1, 2, 3, and 4f.

Between the battery and the charging lines at A, on the onehand, and the motor circuit at B, leading to the motor E, on the other, I interpose a controller indicated as an entirety by D, a circuit breaker at F and a tripping magnet at Gr, together with such switches and current changers as are necessary. A

At H there is a double pole double throw switch having terminals it, h adapted on the one hand to be respectively connected to the terminals a3, at' of thecharging lines a', a2, or to be connected to the terminals b3, 64 of the motor lines at b', 52.

'h2 is a conductor section leading from the terminal L of the switch-board to the hinge post4 f of the circuit breaking lever F.

fis the contact `post for the lever and connected by conductor section f2 with the out-leading terminal or" the controller.v The latter is indicated as a whole by D, and may be constructed in any of many ways capable of accomplishing the ollowingjpurpose. I prefer to emplo v a controller or" the rotary drum or barre type. It has a main line terminal -M- for the in-leadingmain line conductor 71,3 running from the switch contact at it', the out-leading main line terminal contact M-lconnected to the aforesaid conductor f2, and between these two series of .contacts D9 and D10, those at D", respectively, being connected with the negative terminals o spectively, and those at B10 being connected, respectively, with the ositive terminals of the batterygroups. o assist in following the circuits, the stationary controller conthe battery groups, re-

tacts are, respectively, marked 1 2 3 4 corresponding, respectively, with the battery groups, with whos negative terminals they are connected.' And the contacts in the series D10 are 1+, 2+, 3+, 4+,

in correspondence with the positive termi-l nals of the several groups with which they are connected.v The movable part' of the controller is provided with several series of connector bars, those in one series being shown at D', D2, those in the next series at- D3, D, D5, and those in the next .at D, D7, D8.

It will be seen that when the controller is turned part' way, it electrically. connects all of the contacts of the negative series D and the in-leading contact M and that, at the tacts vb, L and conductor h3 to the contact M lVhen the controller is turned into the second position the contact bar D3 electrically unites the iii-leading contact M and the contacts 4 3 of the cell groups 4 and?) the contact bar D4 unites the contacts 2 1 4+ and 3+ and the bar D5 connects the contacts 2+, 1+ and M+. Under this adjustment of the parts, it will be seen, that the groups are so arranged electrically that those of one pair are in parallel with each other, and those of a second pair are in parallel with each other, and the two pairs are in series.

If the controller be carried to the third position indicated, the connector bars or plates at D, D7 D8 are brought into action. The connector D8 electrically joins the contacts M and 4 and the incoming current passes to the negative side of the cell group 4, then goes from the positive side thereof to the controller contacts 4+ and IZ, and thence in sequence through contact d', contact 3 cell group 3, then from the latter to the contacts 3+d2, da, 2 cell group 2, contacts 2+, d5, d 1 cell group 1, contacts 1+, DE and M+.and thence tothe line. When the parts are thus connected up it will be se'en that the cell groups are one after another in series with each other between the main line terminals. l

One of the circuit connections of each of the cell groups (that one on the positive side of each group, as shown in the drawing) includes the turns of a ma et coil around the core g of the magnet which trips the circuit breaking lever. As shown, there are four ot these coils g', g2, g3, g4, respectively, interposed between the-cell groups and the positive terminals of the controller. And in whatsoever combination the roups are put of those above described, it will be seen that it is always the case that the current from each Group passes through its own single coil ot the tripping magnet. The ampere turns around the magnet are the same when the groups of cells are respectively delivering the same current, irrespective ofwhether the groups are in series, orare arranged two in series and two in parallel, or arranged to have four in parallel. Consequently, the circuit breaker acts uniformly under all adjustments of the groups and at all times affords constant protection for the battery.

If the current at any time passes the limit Y -which has4 been predetermined the solenoid core g is drawn backward, hook g5 is pulled away from the hook gs, and the spring g8 quickly draws the lever or bar F away from the contact at f and the whole circuit is broken.

When the operation the reverse of that above described is to be performed, that is to say, when the battery cells are to be charged with current, the same advantages result from the construction and arrangement of' the circuit breaker and the controller in relation to the latter. When so charging, the directions of the passage yof the current may be re arded as the opposite to those above described, but otherwise the devices and their mode of operation are the same.

v It will be observed that this circuit breaker is particularly adapted to protect the storage battery units and the conductors, contact devices, etc., leading to and from each of said units from an excessive draft of current. It will also be observed, however, that the circuit breaker is adapted to protect the electrical devices of the controller', switches, and working or supply circuits as well. Thus in the case of a system such as illustrated in the drawings, if the controller, switches and devices of the working or changing circuit are designed to carry an amperage equal to four times the maximum allowable amperage of each storage battery unit, the circuit breaker will act to prevent an, excessive amperage in the working or supply circuits as well as the storage battery unit circuits.

What I claim is l1. The combination of two or more sources of electric supply, a working circuit connected therewith and taking cur-A renttherefrom, an electromagneticV circuit breaker, having a magnet coil in circuit with each of the said sources of electric supply, and means for connecting with said working circuit the said sources of electric supply in parallel or in series at will, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination of two or more l tiple of two, means for connecting the said sources of electric supply, a working circuit, l cells or all groups in series or parallel or in means for connecting the said sources of electric supply with said working circuit either in parallel or in series, an electro-magnetic circuit breaker in the said circuit having several coil sections, respectively, in circuit with said sources of electric suimly and means for connecting the said sources of supply with the working circuit through the said coils in parallel or in series at will, as described.

3. In a storage battery system, the combination of two or more cells or cell groups' each having two terminal conductor sections, a working circuit, means for connecting the said terminal conductor sections with `the main circuit with the said cells or cell groups in parallel or in series at will, a circuit 'breaker in the said circuit having an electro-magnet formed with a plurality of coil sections, each coil -section being in one of the terminal conductor sections of one of the cells or cell groups, substantially as set forth.

4. In a storage battery system, the combination of Ia working circuit, two or more cells or cell groups, a controller for connecting the said cells or cell groups with the working circuit in parallel or in series, an electro-magnet adapted to control or modifv the working of the said circuit, and having a series of coil sectionsv each interposed between the said controller and -one of the cells or cell groups, substantially as -set forth.

5. In a storage battery system, the com` bination of a working circuit, two or more cells or cell groups, means for connecting the said cells or cell groups with the working circuit in parallel or in series, an automatically movable conductor section in the circuit adapted to openv and close it, and an electro-magnet having two or more coil sections, each permanently interposed between the said movable conductor section and one ofthe said cells or cell groups, substantially as set forth.

6. In a storage battery system, the combination of a Working circuit, four cells or cell groups, means for connecting the said cells or cell groups either in parallel or in two pairs in series parallel or all four in series, a` circuit breaker in the said circuit, and having an electro-magnet with four coil sections, each coil section being permanently interposed between one of the cells or cell groups and the circuit breaker, substantially as set forth.`

7. In a storage battery system, the combination of a working circuit, a number of cells or cell groups which number is a mulmultiple series so that the electromotive forces of all the cells or cell oups in series are equal, a circuit breaker in the said circuit, and having an electromagnet with a coil sectionfor each cell or cell group, each coil section being interposed between one of the cells or cell groups and the circuit breaker, substantially as set forth.

8. The combination of a plurality of sources of electrical energ a working circuit, a controller for said7 working circuit adapted to connect the said sources of elecr trical power therewith either in series or in parallel, and an electromagnetic circuit breaker having a plurality of energizing coils each connected with one of said sources of electrical power and with said controller.

9. The combination of a plurality of sources of electrical energy, a working circuit, a series-parallel controller for the work ing circuit, and an electromagnetic circuit breaker having a plurality of energizing coils, each coil being inter osed between one of said sources of electrica energy and a terminal contact therefor at the controller, substantially as set forth, whereby the ampere turns upon the circuit breaker are the same when each source of electrical energy is delivering the same current, irrespective of whether the said sources of electrical supply are connected up' through said controller either in series, in parallel, or in seriesparallel.

l0. The combination of two or more electrical energy translating devices adapted t0 translate approximately equal amperage at any given time, a single circuit, a seriesparallel controller interposed between said translating devices and said single circuit, and a circuit breaker, the switch of which is interposed in said single circuit, and having a plurality of magnet coils interposed between the translating devices and the contioller.

11. The combination of twol or more electrical energv translating devices, a single circuit, ai series-parallel controller interposed between said devices and said circuit, and a circuit breaker of which the switch is inter posed in said single circuit and which has two or more actuatin coils, each connected respectively and vin ependently of each other to the said translating devices.

In testimony whereof I atiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

FRANK L. SESSIONS.

Witnesses:

C. E. WAXBOM, W. G. MATHO. 

